LETTERS TO THE NEWS-PRESS

I opened up the News-Press and saw pictures of our new City Council members. They look as if they are fresh out of high school. We have a severe homeless problem, State Street has lapsed into a depression, not to mention that from the Apple store down to Cost Plus it smells like urine. The problem with this City Council is going to be pure and simple, and can be defined with one word: inexperienced. These young members will be dragged down by the bureaucracy, and all their “good ideas” will fall to the wayside. It’s as if, including the mayor, it’s on-the-job training, and all they can come up with is to ban plastic straws and plastic bags. To all the citizens of the city, put your seat belts on because it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Lori Crawford

Santa Barbara

Dangerous eucalyptus

A visitor from Australia pointed out to me that Santa Barbara has many beautiful and potentially dangerous eucalyptus trees. Today, across Australia, eucalyptus trees are on fire. They burn fast and furiously; they are filled with eucalyptus oil. In view of what’s happening with deadly fires in Australia and the potential of similar disasters, it may be a good idea to eliminate the eucalyptus trees in beautiful Santa Barbara and replace them with something less flammable.

Ellie Crowe

Santa Barbara

Presidential economy

I would like to commend Terry Dressler for his beautifully written and well thought out writing about the economy that appeared on the front page of the Voices section Sunday, Jan. 5. I think every voter should give this a read, especially those who are willing to vote for anyone because of the economy, even if they disagree with all else about the candidate. It should not matter if you are a conservative, liberal, or any other type; this article will apply to all. Thank you, Terry, for taking the time to write this insightful article.

Kathy Denlinger

Santa Barbara

Stopping World War III

The killing of Gen. Qasem Soleimani of Iran, in my opinion, has kept America out of World War III. He was a terrorist that had to be dealt with. As a kid growing up in Santa Barbara, I remember my parents talking about the chances the world had to kill Hitler and Mussolini. The brave soldiers did their job to perfection then, and now we must also thank President Trump for keeping our country out of World War III.

Jim Delmonte

Santa Barbara

Getting your facts straight

To the letter writer who is unable or uninterested in finding the facts that prove climate change: Where are you looking? With today’s digital age and the internet, one has to sort through copious amounts of false statements and unfounded opinions. If you own a computer, start with www.climate.nasa.gov. This is the federal government’s website for information on climate change. All of the information that is needed to prove climate change is happening can be found there. If you don’t own a computer, go to the library and get assistance.

I agree with you that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, not to their own facts. Where are you getting your “facts” from? Regarding your comment about climate models being inaccurate and thus failing to prove climate change, perhaps you are unaware of a peer-reviewed article published Dec. 14, 2019, in Geophysical Research Letters entitled “Evaluating the performance of past climate model projections.” This is the article’s conclusion: “We find that climate models published over the past five decades were generally quite accurate in predicting global warming in the years after publication, particularly when accounting for differences between modeled and actual changes in atmospheric CO2 and other climate drivers. This research should help resolve public confusion around the performance of past climate modeling efforts, and increases our confidence that models are accurately projecting global warming.”

We all must be on guard so that we do not push false narratives. Don’t rely on other’s opinions unless they are proven experts in their fields.